NFL star Ndamukong Suh tweeted he is in Seattle Monday as it is expected he will be released by the Miami Dolphins at any time.
Veteran defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh tweeted Monday morning that he’s in Seattle and for followers to “stay tuned. Be some exciting news going on.”
Could that news include a meeting with the Seahawks?
Indications are that Suh will likely will talk to the Seahawks at some point soon, though by NFL rules any actual visit can’t happen until he is released by his current team, the Miami Dolphins.
Suh is widely reported likely to be released by Miami soon so the Dolphins can get out of a contract that includes base salaries of $16.9 million, $18.9 million and $18.3 million the next three years, part of a six-year, $114 million deal that he signed in 2015 that made him the highest-paid non-quarterback in the league.
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Once released, Suh can visit any team and sign with any team he wants. The legal tampering period, when the agents of players whose contracts run out this year can begin negotiating with teams, also began on Monday. Those players, however, can not make visits until Wednesday. Unless the Seahawks blew Suh out of the water initially, though, it’s thought he’d likely take other visits (Suh had not been released as of Monday afternoon).
His Miami contract had an average per year salary of $19 million and while the Seahawks likely couldn’t come close to that they might be able to reach the $13-14 million mark or so, which might get it done.
Suh is 31 and made almost $60 million on his Dolphins’ contract already and might also be eager to return to the Pacific Northwest (a native of Portland, he played in college at Nebraska where he was the No. 2 pick in the 2010 draft by the Lions) and play for a team that has a chance to get into the postseason.
Seattle has some obvious holes on its defensive line it needs to fill, especially if Sheldon Richardson — who becomes a free agent this week — doesn’t re-sign (it’s expected Richardson will explore his options in free agency).
And Seattle could well be looking at Suh as a replacement for Richardson.
Suh has been consistently durable and productive, having made the Pro Bowl five times in eight seasons and named a first team All-Pro three times (as NFL.com noted Monday “since 2010, he ranks second among NFL DTs in sacks (51.5), first in QB hits (147), second in total pressures (381.5) and first in tackles for loss (103).” However, he also has made just one Pro Bowl in his three years with the Dolphins, who obviously may feel his best days are behind him.
The Seahawks got an up-close and personal look at Suh when the Dolphins played in Seattle for the season opener in 2016, a game in which the Seahawks had to rally late for a 12-10 win — but only after Suh broke through the line early in the third quarter to sack Russell Wilson, a play on which Wilson suffered a high ankle sprain that began a season filled with injuries for the Seattle quarterback.
“That guy is as tough as you can get,” Carroll said afterward of the challenge of blocking Suh.
One advantage of signing a player like Suh who is being cut is that he would not factor into the compensatory pick formula. Seattle is hoping it may get third-round comp picks in 2019 if it loses Richardson and Graham. Signing other unrestricted free agents offsets the players a team losses in free agency. But cut players, such as Suh will be, are not part of that formula.